november 2001 stet

Vol. 29, No. 1St e tMichigan Interscholastic Press Association

November–December 2001

WHAT’SINSIDE

Pied Grafs4

Sept. 11: One adviser’s

perspective6

Things to considerbefore going digital

Covering controversial

issues

Please see page 16

By Logan McLennan

CoverPHOTO

10

12

2 ■ November–December 2001

Stet

Kirk Weber, Lake Orion HS (810) 693-5420 Julie Price, Haslett HS (517) 339-8249 Jeff Nardone, Grosse Pointe South HS (313) 343-2133 Kim Kozian, L’Anse Creuse HS North (810) 949-4450 ex 45 Brian Town, Haslett HS (517) 339-8249 Rod Satterthwaite, Dexter HS (734) 426 3991 Brian Wilson, Waterford Kettering HS (248) 673-6287 Kevin Moore, Lake Orion HS Gloria Olman, Utica HS (810) 254-8300 ex 61 Betsy Pollard Rau, H.H. Dow HS (517) 839-2482 OpenDiane Herder, Laingsburg HS (517) 651-5091 Lynn Strause, East Lansing HS (517) 332-2545Cheryl Pell, Michigan State University (517) 353-6761 Kevin Hardy, MSU School of Journalism E-mail: [email protected] Web: http://mipa.jrn.msu.edu

President 1st Vice President

2nd Vice President Secretary

Trustee Trustee Trustee

Newspaper ChairLegislative Chair Workshop Chair

Middle School ChairTV Production Chair

Past President/Yearbook ChairExecutive Director Editorial Assistant

Stet is the officialnewsletter of theMichiganInterscholastic PressAssociation, an agencyof the School ofJournalism, MichiganState University, EastLansing, MI 48824-1212. Stet is publishedin September, Novem-ber, February and Mayby the MIPA executivedirector and MSU stu-dents.

Stet MIPA Officers 2001-2002

It’s true. Journalism can be joyfulThe President’s Column

Ihad a wonderful experience this past Julywhile taking Bobby Hawthorne’s RadicalWriting class at the MSU Adviser Work-shop. I hadn’t taken a college journalismclass in five years. It rejuvenated me. Ihadn’t thought from a student’s perspective

in a while, so getting challenged left me feelingrefreshed and ready for a new year.

Our final assignment for the class was to write apersonal column. Below is what I wrote. I felt goodabout it because I was pushed. I was pushed to takesome liberties in my writing. I was encouraged towrite something kind of crazy and out of my com-fort zone. So, I ended up taking on a persona (like acolumnist should do) that wasn’t really me. Itended up being pretty exaggerated and sarcastic,but I think it turned out well.

There was one important thing that came out ofthis final exercise. I had fun. I enjoyed writing it. Itreminded me how joyful journalism can be. That’swhat scholastic journalism should be. Serious fun.Don’t ever forget it.

And now the column...■ Old for being young. Young for being old. It’swhere I stand.

■ A few months ago I turned 29. If you’re olderthan me, you probably consider 29 pretty young.I’ll give you that. But it’s an old young. Think aboutit. I’ve been young for decades now. My time haspast. I’ll be 30 in less than a year. The signs areeverywhere. I’m getting scared.

■ Being addressed as “mister” seems natural now.

■ My cousin Dave, who’s nine months older thanme, is losing his hair.

■ I’m a tenured teacher.

■ I’ve been employed longer than 65 percent of thestaff.

■ My last high school days now fall into double-digit years.

■ I listen to talk radio.

■ I refuse to drink cheap beer.

■ In the last 10 months, I’ve purchased almost 40jazz CDs.

■ If I were a professional athlete, I’d be considereda wily veteran.

■ And, if everything goes as planned, I should be afather by this time next year. If I’m still alive bythen.

■ I don’t know how much time I have left. I’m old.And I’m not very good at it. I’m trying to take itslowly though. I figure this might be good.

■ I like Frank Sinatra. James Bond. The Beatles. M*A*S*H* re-runs. Those things are old, right? I can fit in.

■ I just have some questions. How often should Ieat at Bill Knapp’s? Am I missing something aboutthe expressway’s right lane? Is a big Cadillac in mydestiny? Or does a mini-van come first? I’m stillconfused. I hope there’s clairvoyance in aging.

Kirk Weber

Please see PRESIDENT on page 9

Join MIPA Important: Please write the name of eachpublication and/or production you are enter-ing into membership. Only publicationswhose names appear here will be eligiblefor competition (except for Web).

Newspaper name

Yearbook name

Literary Magazine name

Video Production name

Membership Fees $42.50 for one publication or production

$10 for each publication or production after that

Payment enclosed

1 publication or production other publications or productions

($10 for each beyond the first one)

Add $5 if you would like a copy of A Cut AboveSend to:

Total enclosed

2001-2002 MIPA Membership Application Form

School

Phone ( ) Fax Number ( )

Address

City State ZIP County

Newspaper Adviser’s Name

Home Address

Home Phone ( ) E-mail

Yearbook Adviser’s Name

Home Address


Lit. Magazine Adviser’s Name

Home Address


Video Production Adviser’s Name

Home Address


Deadline: Schools must joinMIPA by Jan. 31, 2002, to beeligible for contest awards.

Send this form and payment to: MIPA,School of Journalism 305 Communica-tion Arts Bldg Michigan State UniversityEast Lansing, MI 48824-1212

For office use only please: ck # amt

po invoice date

Please list school as you want it to be used on membership certificate andother MIPA documentation. Please type or print. Check made payable toMIPA must accompany the form. PLEASE fill out form completely.

Today’s date

School Classification: A B C D (Check with your principal or athletic director if you are not sure.)

Renewal New (School has not been a member in 5 years)

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Reserve your copy of

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A Cut Above is a booklet full of winning entries from the 2000Newspaper Individual Categorycontest. It will be available in early2001 just in time to help youchoose entries for the 2001 contest.Cost: $5 (includes postage)

A Cut Above

Write very clearly, please!




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My parents or anyother adult overthe age of 70 willread this andlaugh. But those of

you out there in your mid to late40s—you know, those of youwho put on their bi-focals to readthis column—will understand.

I feel so old. Each time I open my jar of

Cellex-c and apply it to my agingface I get depressed. Not nearlyas much as I do though, when Igo to put on my jeans and haveto lie flat on my back to zip themup over my poochie belly. Thenthere’s the hair loss in the front.Where I used to have to search tofind my scalp, now I work tocover it up. I’m so sorry about allthose Rogaine jokes, guys. Andwe aren’t even going to talk

about my grayhairs. They’ve

been chem-icallyaltered.

Nothing, however, is worse onmy self esteem than the screamsof my students when I tell them Ilike to roller blade in a thong.

You, too? And all this time Ithought we were friends!

Lately, I’ve been doing a lot ofself-analysis and research on han-dling the aging process and havediscovered that people have beenfeeling this way for centuries.Many of them got over their fearof aging the easy way.

They died. Slackers.After days of wallowing in

self pity, I startlingly realized thatI don’t feel old—I just look old—and therein lies the solution.

I need to avoid mirrors. I needto avoid windows. In fact, I needto avoid any reflective devices.And by all means, I need to con-tinue to do the things that makeme feel young—teaching andadvising.

Where else but in the journal-ism room can you experiencechair races down a dark hall afterthe custodians go home? Whereelse can you laugh till you releasefluid into your Depends whenone of your male students walksinto the room dressed in a silverdress and heels? Where else canyou have a squirt gun fight out infront of the school on yourseniors’ last night of deadline?

When we advisers get feelingsorry for ourselves because half

the teaching staff vacated thebuilding at 3:05 and we knowwe’re there until 9, we needto remember that we’re the

lucky ones. We trulytouch kids’ lives and

they touch ours. We have rela-tionships with teens that areoften times better than the onesthey have with their parents. Weget to watch their joy over a well-written story or a package weknow will win a design contest.We get to watch them respondwith maturity and compassionwhen a page one story about thebudget is replaced with oneabout the Attack on America.Yes, we’re the lucky ones.

And I am particularly luckybecause I get another shot ofyouth in August when I directthe MIPA summer workshop andwatch over 600 kids have thetime of their lives while workingtheir little butts off! I sincerelyhope I can spend many moresummers with your students atMSU.

Actually, I sincerely hope Ican spend many more yearsadvising. I love it and it’s fun.(And this is from a woman whojust finished the deadline fromhell.)

And when I get too old toteach or direct a workshop andthey put me in a nursing home,I’m going to demand two veryimportant things—There must beno mirrors and there must bechairs with wheels.

Hang on, Gertrude, we’regoing for a ride!

Note: If you have read Presi-dent Kirk Weber’s column youwill realize that great mindsthink alike—and Betsy was eventhinking about changing placeswith Kirk—that is, until she sawthe part about starting a family.


Betsy Pollard Rau teaches at H.H. Dow H.S., and advises The Updatenewspaper there. She’s also the MIPA Summer Workshop director.

By Betsy Pollard RauH.H. Dow High School

Pied Gra s

November–December 2001 ■ 5

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The American Society ofNewspaper Editor’s summerinstitute (ASNE) proved to beinvaluable because of the tipsfrom the many professional jour-nalists who presented.

The 2001 summer conferencewas the first of its kind. Thirty-five participants were selected toattend 6 sessions held at univer-sities all over the country, andwe were wined and dined withfirst class accommodations everystep of the way (all at no cost tous!)

I was lucky enough to attendthe conference in Tampa, at theUniversity of South Florida. Notonly was the setting gorgeous,but the university also has a firstrate hotel, the Embassy Suites,located right on campus wherewe each had our own suite andmore food than we could packaway.

In addition, Dr. Randy Miller,the coordinator for the Tampaconference, provided us withnightly entertainment all the wayfrom Busch Gardens to pool par-ties.

The most exciting and benefi-cial aspect of the campus, howev-er, was the terrific informationand mounds of materials that Ireceived. Books, tapes, handouts,and more were free for the ask-ing.

Speakers from large newspa-pers such as the Tampa Tribuneand the St. Petersburg Timesgave presentations all the wayfrom news, sports, editorial, andfeature writing to the latest on

broadcast convergence and on-line reporting.

It is impossible to include allthe good stuff from the confer-ence in one sitting, but since themain focus of the institute wasjournalistic ethics, here are somebasic tips passed along fromFlorida professionals:

DOING ETHICS Ask Good Questions To Make GoodEthical Decisions: The PoynterInstitute, A School For Journalists(www.poynter.org)

1. What do I know? What do Ineed to know?

2. What is my journalistic pur-pose?

3. What are my ethical con-cerns?

4. What organizational poli-cies and professional guidelinesshould I consider?

5. How can I include otherpeople, with different perspec-tives and diverse ideas, in thedecision-making process?

6. Who are the stakeholders-those affected by my decision?What are their motivations?Which are legitimate?

7. What if the roles werereversed? How would I feel if I

were in the shoes of one of thestakeholders?

8. What are the possible conse-quences of my actions? Shortterm? Long term?

9. What are my alternatives tomaximize my truthtellingresponsibility and minimizeharm?

10. Can I clearly and fully jus-tify my thinking and my deci-sions? To my colleagues? To thestakeholders? To the public?

CODE OF ETHICS SPJ Society of Professional Journalists

1. Seek Truth and Report It 2. Minimize Harm 3. Act Independently 4. Be Accountable

RESPECTING PRIVACY Guidelines: Bob Steele, The Poynter Institute

1. What is my journalistic pur-pose in seeking this information?In reporting it?

2. Does the public have a justi-fiable need to know? Or is thismatter just one in which somewant to know?

3. How much protection doesthis person deserve? Is this per-

ASNE summer program for educatorsbig hit with Michigan adviserBy Terri MartinFlint Central High School

Terri Martin advises thenewspaper at Flint CentralH.S. She is currently workingon improving the on-sitecontests held at the MIPASpring Conference. Please see PROGRAM on page 9

Speakers from large newspapers such as theTampa Tribune and the St. Petersburg Timesgave presentations from news, sports, editorial,and feature writing to the latest on broadcastconvergence and on-line reporting.


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The drive home finally hap-pened about 11:45 p.m. The roadswere empty on this Sunday night,almost Monday morning. Mosthouses were dark.

It was quiet. I also felt quiet. Ifelt better.

It had been a typical produc-tion night in the Haslett HighSchool Viking Longboat news-room. There was work. Therewas play, OK, a good amount ofp l a y .

What made the night differentwas that the staff of this studentnewspaper was working on aspecial issue focusing on the ter-rorist attacks of Sept. 11.

The terror happened on whathad started as a typical Tuesdaymorning at high school. Every-thing had been going just as itwas supposed to, flowing in 50-minute increments.

We all know what that feelslike, going through the motions,learning as we go along, butready to move on when the bellrings. And then everythingchanged, with the flash of a jetsailing into the World Trade Cen-t e r .

That afternoon the kids held abrainstorming session.

“This is when you find out thecrappy side of being a journalist,”I told the visibly upset group ofabout 20 students. “This is whenyou learn it’s OK to be emotional

about the stories you are cover-ing, but when you learn you havea job to do and a purpose tos e r v e . “

They had been watching theevents of the morning unfold inevery class they attended: Theplanes hitting the World TradeCenter, the twin towers crum-bling, the walls of the Pentagonfalling as another plane crashedinto it, the uncertainty of whereother airliners were at thatmoment in time.

The entire group was touchedto the core of their young hearts.But they were ready to brain-storm, they were ready to coverthe story of how the attack on theU.S. was affecting their worlds -their lives, at their school.

They saw that it was a side ofthe story they had the power tot e l l .

By Sunday, the students hadbeen working rigorously on theirstories all week, pushing the abil-ities of my beginning writers,pushing the stress level of theeditors. Photos were taken to doc-ument the reactions of the stu-

dents to the attacks. Design ele-ments had been conceived andready to be put into action.

Next thing we knew it was11:30 p.m. and I was telling thekids, “You need to go home.”Sure, the paper wasn’t quite fin-ished, but most elements werethere and we were confident itwould be wrapped up byWednesday to go to press. And,despite the world continuing todeal with the tragedies, the bellfor first hour was going to ring at7:45 a.m. that next morning.They’re kids. They needed to behome with their families, gettingthe sleep they needed to starttheir school week on the rightn o t e .

I sent them home. Then Icleaned up the last of the candywrappers, put the pizza crustsinto the trash, stacked up the popcans and gathered my things tohead home.

It was once I got behind thewheel of my car for the 15-minutedrive that I realized I felt better. I

By Julie PriceHaslett High School

Sept.11, 2001

Julie Price is the yearbook and newspaperadviser at Haslett H.S. She

is the first vice president onthe MIPA board.

“This is when you find out thecrappy side of being a journalist,”I told the visibly upset group ofabout 20 students.

Please see SEPT. 11 on page 8

Michigan students cover tragicevent in their newspapers

Haslett HSAdviser: Julie PriceEditor: Renee Neuner


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Gull Lake HSAdviser: Lisa Miller Editors: Colin Clancy & Vicky Langshaw

Lake Orion HSAdviser: Kevin MooreEditors: Cathy Kimmel & Paul Balderas

Midland HS

Adviser: Jim Woehrle

Editor: Robert Butts

Novi HSAdviser: Lydia CadenaEditors: Sarah-Beth O’Connor & Carolyn Vermeulen

Alpena HSAdviser: Marsha SmithEditor: KrisAnn Baker


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felt quiet. I felt more settled thanI hadfelt all week.

I had been working—workinghard—with a group of young peoplewho were attempting to take actionduring this tragic time. We couldn’tmake the trip to New York City tohelp search for the victims.

The Red Cross didn’t even wantour blood at that moment in time.There wasn’t a whole lot we could dofor the national tragedy from oursmall school in the center of Michigan.We felt helpless, afraid and unsettled.

But these kids ultimately foundthey were empowered. They couldmake a difference by reporting on andwriting about the story of the tragedyas it affected their world.

They could make a difference bydocumenting the historic events asthey affected life at their high school.

From a totally selfish point of view,I could make a difference by advisingthese students on the best approachesto telling the stories the best way pos-sible. We could have a serious discus-sion about how to handle the story ofa young man living in our communitywhose father is a New York City

police officer. Could we do the story of how this

student handled news of the attack ifwe found out his father was killed inthe World Trade Center? We didn’tever come up with an answer to thatquestion and, thankfully, didn’t haveto because his father was fine. But itwas an amazing, high-level discus-s i o n .

This was not an easy week to be ateacher, and to be an emotionalhuman while also being a teacher. Butit was a time when I was reminded ofwhy the job of advising a studentnewspaper is an important job.

Being a newspaper adviser meansmaking a difference, sometimes whenyou least expect it and sometimeswhen it’s painful. Then 11:45 p.m.rolls around. You leave your class-room through the dark, eerie hallwaysof a totally empty school.

You make that drive home throughthe empty streets. You know thisnewspaper is going to happen and beimportant to the students’ audience -their classmates.

You know you work with reallyamazing young people.

H.H. Dow HSAdviser:

Betsy RauEditor:

Kelli Cynecki

Dowagiac HSAdviser: Teri FrantzEditor: Shamah Stark

Groves HSAdviser:

Laura RedmanEditor:

Scott Rothenberg

Grand Ledge HS Adviser:

Jeremy VanHofEditors:

D. Alim-Young,Emily Jarvis,

Jenna Haywood& Terra

Haywood

Sept. 11, continued from page 6

Battle Creek Lakeview HSAdviser: Becky FineganEditor: Lindsey Culp


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son a public official, public figure or celebri-ty? Is this person involved in the newsevent by choice or chance?

4. What is the nature of harm I mightcause by intruding on someone’s privacy?

5. Can I cause considerable harm tosomeone just by asking questions, observ-ing activity, or obtaining information evenif I never actually report the story?

6. How can I better understand this per-son’s vulnerability and desire for privacy?Can I make a better decision by talking withthis person?

7. What alternative approaches can I takein my reporting and my storytelling to min-imize the harm of privacy invasion whilestill fulfilling my journalistic duty ofinforming the public?

For instance, can I leave out some “pri-vate“ matters while still accurately and fair-ly reporting the story? Or, can I focus moreon a system failure issue rather than report-ing intensely on one individual?

These tips only scratch the surface ofwhat my new friends and I learned at theASNE institute. Interviewing, writing, moti-vation techniques, and many more topicswere discussed in those two short weeks.

So much valuable information is avail-able to us as high school newspaper advi-sors; we need to take advantage of theopportunities that are simply waiting forus.

ASNE is just one of them. If you areinterested in contacting the institute for nextsummer, you can reach Diana Mitsu Klos atwww.highschooljournalism. org. So muchis waiting out there—why not?

For more information on the programsfor 2002, go to the ASNE Web site atwww.asne.org.

Program, continued from page 5

We need you!MIPA will be judging the Individual NewspaperContest entries on Saturday, March 2, and we’dlove to have you be one of the judges. This is agreat time for advisers to get together for somecamaraderie and a look at what Michiganstudents are writing about. Please e-mail

[email protected] if you are interested in helping!

confused. I hope there’s clairvoyance in aging.

■ If I’m going to be old, I need to do it right. I figureit’s about time I start checking out a sports car.What do you think? A red Corvette? Or a Sebringconvertible? No, forget it. I need an imagemakeover. I’ll just head down to the Harley dealer-ship.

Thank God I still have my fashion sense.

■ Socks and sandals are in. Check.

■ It’s okay to pull my pants over my belly if it’s toobig. Check.

■ And the motto: “If it fits, it looks good” stillapplies. Great! I don’t see what the big deal is. Thisis the 21st century. Elastic exists. It does wondersfor any physique.

■ Maybe my life has passed me by. By 27 the year-book I advise won a Pacemaker. By 28 I was theMIPA president. What’s next? Retirement? I think Ineed to slow down.

■ Getting old is something I need to fight as long aspossible. When will my PlayStation 2 seem child-ish? I think I need something younger to delay theinevitable.

■ I think I’ve got it. I’m going to Toys-R-Us tomor-row. I’ll need a list.

■ Matchbox cars. Check.

■ A big wheel. Check.

■ A GI-Joe. (With kung-fu grip.) Check.

■ A rubber ducky. Check.

■ And, a teddy bear. That should do it. I figure I’llget at least 10 more youthful years out of that.

■ Meanwhile, I have some plans to prevent myselffrom maturating too quickly. The first thing I’mgoing to do is toss my Brookstone One-cup coffeemaker out the window and start buying Jolt. Mealswill consist entirely of fast food and Kraft Macaroniand Cheese. My bedtime will be no earlier than 1:30a.m. I’ll buy a skateboard. My wardrobe will con-sists strictly of Abercrombie and any other highprice clothing I can obtain. And finally, I’ll moveback in with my parents. That should do it.

■ Look at me. My finger is on the pulse of youth.Fortunately, I’m good at it. Although I hear agingmakes you delusional. Is that true?

President, continued from page 2


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In the rush to leave the dark-room for the bright, glowingworld of digital imaging, don’tforget to take along the crafts-manship and excitement of

creating and preparing images forreaders.

Let’s face it, spending a day withhands that smell like a chemistryexperiment gone bad will be easilyleft behind. The excitement of seeinga great print appear magically fromthe shallow depths of a chemicaltray, however, will never be forgot-ten.

The pride in making print afterprint until it is just right is the sign ofphoto craftsmanship that producesgreat images for student publica-tions.

The trick in not throwing out thecraftsmanship with the developer isto figure out a way to approach thenew world of digital imaging in thesame way teachers and studentshave traditionally approached dark-room photojournalism.

Remember the BasicsLearning about f-stops, shutter

speeds, depth of field and exposurecontrol is as relevant to digital imag-ing as it is to film photography.

A lack of knowledge at themoment the shutter is pressed canspell disaster for both digital files andphotographic prints. Poorly exposed,blurry images make bad photos.

Think Content and C o m p o s i t i o n

These will always be the keys toproducing images that tell the storywith visual impact.

Digital photographers need totake time to analyze every imagethey make to find the best ones andto learn from their mistakes.

The contact sheet feature ofAdobe Photoshop is an excellent wayto study all the photos made duringan assignment.

Like the paper contact sheet madefrom negatives, it reveals how theassignment was approached andwhat needs to be improved beforethe next one.

By David StedwellMarycrest International Univ.

Dave Stedwell teaches in thegraphics communicationdepartment at Marycrest

International University inDavenport, Iowa. He teachesthe beginning photography

and Photoshop classes foradvisers during the summer

at MSU. He is also director of photography at the MIPA

Summer Journalism Workshop for high school

students.

D O N’TR U S H

Before you go boldlyinto the digital age,

there are some essentialthings to remember

Working with imaging software is only one of the learning activities for students who studydigital photography at the MIPA Summer Journalism Workshop. They also improve their skillsby covering photo assignments, and receive instruction in the basics of exposure control, con -tent and composition.They produce digital contact sheets and paper prints of their work as anaid to learning new techniques and improving their work.

Photo by David Stedwell

Please see DIGITAL on page 15


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NOTES

NEWSIf you have news to shareabout your program or yourstudents, please let us know.We’ll mention it in the nextissue of Stet. [email protected].

&

A PIONEERBetsy Pollard Rau was awardedan NSPA Pioneer Award at theJEA/NSPA convention inBoston earlier this month. ThePioneer is the highest awardNSPA offers. It is given tothose journalism educatorswho have made substantial contributions to high schooljournalism. Rau is the adviserof The Update newspaper atH.H. Dow HS. She also directsthe MIPA Summer JournalismWorkshop. Other Michiganeducators who have beenawarded a Pioneer are BobButton, Mattie Crump, JohnField, Gloria Olman, CherylPell and Kenson Siver.

KUDOS!Lynn Strause, immediate pastpresident of MIPA and currentyearbook chair, has beennamed the 2002 JEA NationalYearbook Adviser of the Year.She is the first person fromMichigan to receive this awardsince its inception in 1995.Strause is the yearbook adviserat East Lansing HS and advisesthe Ceniad, which just wonBest of Show at the JEA/NSPAconvention in Boston. Strausewill attend the JEA/NSPA con-vention in Phoenix early Aprilto receive the her award.

■ Michigan made a goodshowing at the JEA/NSPA fallconvention in Boston. CherylPell and 10 Michigan advisersattended, most of them withstudents. Betsy Rau received aPioneer Award from JEA. Anumber of our yearbooks andnewspapers came away win-ners in the Best of Show com-petitions. Check the NSPAWeb site for the complete listof winners.

■ Make plans to attendupcoming conventions. Thespring convention is inPhoenix on April 4-7. Thedeadline for session proposalsis Dec. 1 (If you speak, youdon't have to pay the registra-tion fee). Next fall is in Dallas.It's a great experience for yourstaff with two full days of ses-sions, exhibits and keynotespeakers. Contact Lynn formore information.

■ IMPORTANT DEADLINEAPPROACHING: The portfoliosfor High School Journalist ofthe Year are due to me byFeb. 15. If you did not receiveinformation and an applica-tion from JEA, it is availableonline. Be sure the entryincludes all the required piecesso the portfolio will not be dis-qualified. As an added incen-tive, MIPA has voted to awardour state winner with $100.

-Lynn StrauseJEA state director

NEW LOOK FOR MIPAAt its November meeting, theMIPA Board of Directors votedto accept a new logo for theorganization.

The logo was created byRandy Yeip, a graduate stu-dent in the MSU School ofJournalism. Yeip, originallyfrom Utica HS, has been activein MIPA throughout his col-lege years.

“The MIPA logo was looking alittle dated,” said Cheryl Pell,director. “It was a wonderfullogo created for us by aLaingsburg HS student in1989,” Pell said. “It served uswell during the late 80s and90s, but it’s just time for achange.”

The use of the new logo,shown above, is effectiveimmediately, although theoffice will continue to usematerials already printed withthe old logo until the supply isdepleted.

JEA/NSPA Publication WinnersVarious Michigan schools took homehonors from the JEA/NSPA conven-tion held in Boston.

NSPA Pacemaker AwardFocusMidland HSMidland, MI

In the Best of Show contest, publications must be submitted bystaff members who are attendingthe convention.

NSPA Best of Show Winners

■ Newspapers 1-8 Pages

Third PlaceThe TowerGrosse Pointe South HSGrosse Pointe Farms, MI

■ Newspapers 9-12 Pages

Third PlaceThe UpdateH.H. Dow HSMidland, MI

Seventh PlaceThe ArcherLake Orion HSLake Orion, MI

■ Newspaper Specialty Publications

Fifth PlaceThe Viking LongboatHaslett HSHaslett, MI

■ Yearbooks 1-224 Pages

Fifth PlaceDixitHaslett HSHaslett, MI

■ Yearbooks 275-324 Pages

First PlaceCeniadEast Lansing HSEast Lansing, MI

Sixth PlaceWarriorUtica HSUtica, MI

JEA News

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Betsy Rau vividly remembersthe day she was called to herprincipal’s office to discuss anupcoming edition of the schooln e w s p a p e r .

The Midland Dow HighSchool adviser was asked toexplain why two of her studentswere poking around the Davison

School District. The pairof young reporters waslooking into an appar-ent scholarship schemebeing run by a Davisonschool board member—a quest that eventuallywould grab the atten-tion of top administra-tors from both schooldistricts.

“It was not a com-fortable experience,”

said Rau, recalling her conversa-tions with school leaders. “In theend, though, we were able to runthe story.”

That’s not always the case insituations where student publi-cations take on controversial top-i c s .

In the13 years since theSupreme Court ruled high schoolofficials can censor student pub-lications, student journalistsacross Michigan have hit barrierswhen reporting on controversialtopics.

In Rau’s case, pressure torefrain from running a story ini-tially came from outside the dis-trict. Upon hearing that TheUpdate was looking for informa-tion on the scholarship scheme,Davison’s superintendent calledMidland’s schools chief, who rec-ommended that Principal Jan

Goodall read the article before itwent to print.

She read the article—the firsttime the paper received priorreview—and recommendedsome minor changes to clarifyinformation and answer ques-t i o n s .

While Rau is glad the papereventually was able to run thestory, she worries about theeffect such pressure could have

(controversial)Covering

By Sharon Terlep

issues

on other advisers faced with thesame situation.

“I really lost a lot of sleepover this,” she said. “I can’timagine what people go throughin schools that don’t give theirstudent paper this kind of free-d o m . ”

Take one of the most recentand high-profile cases of a stu-dent publication coming underfire. Earlier this year, an articlein a suburban Detroit highschool newspaper resulted in ateacher being suspended, a stu-dent being sent home and arequirement that the paper printa special section to atone for itsactions.

The situation began with aFebruary issue of The Perspec-tive, the student newspaper atfor Plymouth-Salem schools inCanton Township. The paperincluded a column by studentChris Mackinder that ques-tioned the need to celebrateblack history month.

Mackinder argued that themonth-long recognition furtherdivides the races, concluding,“If it’s a race war they want,keeping things the way they arewill sure get them one. By creat-ing a month to make a group ofpeople happy the battle ofwhich color is supreme will betaken to an extreme.”

The words sent off afirestorm throughout the 4,900student-district, especially

among several parents of theschool’s black students. Thepaper received 21 letters to theeditor criticizing the article andstudents complained to the prin-c i p a l .

In response to the outrage,Nagy was removed from theclassroom and later apologizedfor the article. The paper alsopublished a special sectioncalled “Diversity: Is it work-ing?” The district’s actions weremet with equally harsh criticismby local media, who criticizedthe move as squelching freespeech for the sake of avoidingcontroversy. Both the DetroitNews and Free Press ran opin-ion pieces on the topic.

“We feel that this was han-dled productively and positive-ly,” said Judy Evola, Plymouth-Salem's community relationsofficer. “Basically, the parentsand students and communitymembers came together aroundthe article and agreed it wasn’tthe appropriate representationof Black History Month.”

Given another chance, Nagysaid, she would do things differ-ently. She would have talked tothe student about tempering hiswords and make sure the articlewas better written. Adding tothe problem was that many stu-dents didn’t know the differencebetween an opinion piece and anewspaper article, she said.

“I was totally bowled over bythe reaction,” said Nagy, who’sbeen an adviser at the school for

six years and was previously theadviser at West Bloomfield.

“If it was written in differentwords, I don’t think this wouldhave happened.”

Trouble With Humor But the kind of controversy

that alerts school boards andsends principals into a panic canstart out seemingly innocuous.Humor—the kind found in anoffhanded statement in a humorcolumn or thrown out in senioreditions of the newspaper—isone of the most common cul-prits, said Jeff Nardone, adviserat Grosse Pointe South HighS c h o o l .

Nardone, adviser at theschool for seven years, hasfought to publish stories on top-ics such as drug use. But he’sreceived the most heat whenstudents set out to get a laugh.

“When students try to befunny, it gets us into more trou-ble than when there’s a big con-troversy,” he said, rememberinga light-hearted attempt by stu-dents to give consumer adviceon various bras.

Regardless of the gravity ofa topic, it’s important studentsget a chance to express theirviews, he said.

And the best way to ensurethis happens is by having agood relationship with theschool principal.

Nardone said he alerts hisprincipal before running a storythat could cause controversy. Hesympathizes with the adminis-trators, who generally are theones required to answer toangry parents and communitym e m b e r s .

“An adviser should try tohave a good relationship withthe principal,” who’s never beenforced to refrain from running


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Sharon Terlep graduatedfrom MSU with a degree injournalism. She was involvedin MIPA when she was a stu-dent at L’Anse Creuse NorthHS. During her senior year,she was accepted as a MIPAStudent Journalist. Currentlyshe is working at the LansingState Journal.Please see CONTROVERSY on page 14


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an article. “Because deep downwe all have the same purpose ofeducating the students.”

Michele Yankee, the school’sassociate principal for adminis-trative services, agrees with Nar-

d o n e .“We try to treat this

as a learning experi-ence,” she said. “Andour experience is thatour students areresponsible writers.”

If a teacher is inter-viewed on a controver-sial topic, he or shemay ask to read overthe quote and its con-text before it goes inthe paper—somethingconsidered bad amongprofessional journalists.

But beyond that, the newspaperis given freedoms like any otherpublication, she said.

“They haven’t given us a rea-son to think they’re irresponsi-ble,” she said.

Legal BattlesScholastic press can be a

legally murky area. In the 1988decision on the HazelwoodSchool District v. Kuhlmeier, theSupreme Court gave school offi-cials the power to censor news-papers. The court ruled theprincipal at the Missouri HighSchool did not violate students’First Amendment rights by pro-hibiting them from printing arti-cles dealing with teen pregnancyand divorce. In the ruling, judgessaid as long as officials have rea-sonable cause to withhold mater-ial, they could to do so. Thisopened the door for a national

debate on what constitutes rea-sonable cause and how farschool leaders should be allowedto take their newly affirmedp o w e r .

Since the ruling, the StudentPress Law Center, has seen adramatic increase in the numberof requests for legal assistance,according to the center’s Webs i t e .

The center went from gettingabout 550 calls annually beforethe ruling to about 1,600 after-ward. In at least six states—Cali-fornia, Massachusetts, Iowa,

Colorado, Kansas andArkansas—free speech advocateshave pushed through laws pro-tecting students journalists’ free-dom of speech, according to theFreedom Forum. In Michigan,former state Rep. Lynn Johndal,D-Lansing, tried to pass a lawthat would have prohibited mid-dle- and high-school officialsfrom seeing articles before theyare published or from stoppingarticles from running. The billnever became law.

Fighting CensorshipThere are ways to work with-

in the school and legal systems.From fighting censorship toappealing to getting legal help,the Student Press Law Centeroffers the following suggestionson fighting censorship:

■ Don’t self-censor to avoid anegative reaction from schoolofficials and the community.

■ Create a policy that estab-lishes the publication as a forumfor student expression. Underthe Hazelwood decision, publi-cations that are a tool for student

expression have greater FirstAmendment rights.

■ Try to fight any attempt tocensor by asking for specificobjections and talking to admin-i s t r a t o r s .

■ Try to get the publicinvolved in implementing a freeexpression policy. Local mediacan be helpful in getting wordout and offering support.

■ Call legal authority, such asthe law center, for help.

■ Consider starting an alter-native publication.

■ Push for state legislationthat would help give FirstAmendment protection to stu-dent publications.

For Anthony Ramirez, whoworked on the scholarship storyfor The Update, his brush withcensorship brought mixed reac-tions.

Ramirez, a sophomore study-ing labor relations at CornellUniversity, is thankful his papereventually was able to run thestory. But the steps the paperhad go through—such as ensur-ing that FOIA requests weren’tfiled on behalf of the newspaper—are a discouraging sign ofadministrators’ view of the stu-dent media, he said.

“The most frustrating aspectwas the fact that the school dis-trict’s goals were completely dif-ferent from ours,” he said. “Theyhad no interest whatsoever inexposing the scholarship scams.

“This was rather offensiveand I believe that sort of think-ing had the power to destroywhat makes The Update anaward-winning newspaper.”

Controversy, continued frompage 13


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Adobe Photoshop is a powerful tool for craftingimages.

Digital photographers need to take the time tolearn how images can be improved with the properuse of levels and curves as well as the traditionaltools of dodging and burning.

Making a quality image with software takes allthe trial and error, care and skill of darkroomprinting. It just doesn’t take seven minutes to seethe results.

See It On PaperDigital photographers need to see the results of

their work before it is published.

Printed photos not only provide tangible proofof craftsmanship, they are also a better indicationof reproduction quality than a glowing computerscreen image.

An investment in a good inkjet printer pays div-idends in opportunities for digital photographersto carefully study their work.

Those who lament that digital photo studentshave missed the excitement of watching printsappear in a developing tray haven't seen themexperience the excitement of watching a well-craft-ed image appear in full color on a computer screen.

The thrill is the same, it's just quicker, and with-out the chemical smell.

Digital,continued frompage 10

Fall J-Dayscenes

Above: Two students discuss their nextpresentation.

New advisers were recognized at the adviser and speaker luncheon.

Left: Students peer over the secondfloor railing.

MIPA/School of Journalism 305 Communication Arts Building Michigan State University East Lansing, MI 48824-1212

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MIPA Calendar

CoverPHOTO

T he boy in this photo isthe brother of a youngtee ball player. Original-

ly I had wanted to work ondepth of field shots, and show-ing action so I stopped at a localfield (near the middle school onKinawa in Okemos) wheresome boys were playing base-ball.

While waiting for the teamsto get on the field, I noticed thisboy exploring his surround-ings. He wanted to be part ofthe team so badly, handing hisbrother baseballs, grabbing thewater bottles, only to be shooedaway by the other kids.

The little boy found this pileof baseballs near the bench andbegan playing with them. Thiswas as close as he could come

to playing baseball at this age.This photograph was taken

with a Minolta 8000T and aSigma 75-300 lens. I usedTMAX 400 (bw film) and alsodid some dodging and burningon parts of the print. In highschool I did photography formy journalism class but neverhad the opportunity to developmy film or make my ownprints.

The class this summer mademe feel more responsible forthe images I made. I will beinterning next school year andhaven’t gotten my placementyet. I will be certified to teachmath and English at the sec-ondary level and hope to find aschool who will need some helpin their journalism department.

By Logan McLennan

Dec. 15, 2001Fall delivery Yearbook late postmark dead-line for 2001 yearbook

Jan. 31, 2002Deadline to join MIPA for publications/productions to be judged in 2001-2002

Feb. 22, 2002Newspaper (Spartan and Individual Cate-gory) and Web Site/Video Production offi-cial postmark deadline for 2001-2002entries

March 2, 2002MIPA Individual Newspaper Category judging at MSU

March 22, 2002 Spartan Newspaper, Web and Video Pro-duction late postmark deadline for 2001-2002 entries.

April 18, 2002MIPA Spring Conference at Lansing Centerin downtown Lansing.

July 15, 2002Official postmark deadline for 2002 springdelivery Yearbook and Literary Magazine.

July 22-26, 2002Photoshop Workshop through the MSUSchool of Journalism. Brochure will beready early next year or visit the MIPAWeb site: mipa.jrn.msu.edu

July 29-Aug. 2, 2002Publication Advisers Workshops throughthe MSU School of Journalism. Brochurewill be ready early next year or visit theMIPA Web site: mipa.jrn.msu.edu

Aug. 4–8, 2002MIPA Summer Journalism Workshop forStudents. Brochure will be ready early nextyear or visit the MIPA Web site:mipa.jrn.msu.edu

Aug. 15, 2002Yearbook and literary magazine late post-mark deadline for 2002 entries

Watch your mail afterthe holidays for the

Contest Packet that con-tains important informa-tion for all MIPA schools and advisers.

Jennifer Barrett, left, and Gloria Olman enjoy the reception for the 75th Anniversary of Quill and Scroll on Satur -day night at the JEA/NSPA convention in Boston. Barrett is an MSU School of Journalism intern working withOlman at Utica HS. Barrett will be looking for an English and journalism teaching position next September.

november 2001 stet

Documents

haslett hs

utica hs

dow hs

laingsburg hs

dexter hs

waterford kettering

east lansing hs

grosse pointe south